Malaysia's six major government-linked investment companies are channelling RM20.3 billion into the domestic economy during 2025 as part of the Government-Linked Enterprises Activation and Reform Programme, representing a substantial acceleration of the initiative that entered its third year. The deployment marks a significant jump from the RM6.6 billion allocated in 2024, with momentum expected to continue into the first quarter of 2026, according to the GEAR-uP Progress Report released today.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim underscored the philosophy underpinning this investment strategy, characterising it as capital mobilised with deliberate national purpose rather than passive financial positioning. The programme, launched in 2024 under the stewardship of the Ministry of Finance, targets the deployment of RM120 billion across five years to catalyse socioeconomic reforms whilst accelerating Malaysia's industrial transformation in an era of shifting global dynamics and heightened economic volatility.
The six anchor institutions driving GEAR-uP comprise Khazanah Nasional Bhd, the Employees Provident Fund, Permodalan Nasional Bhd, Kumpulan Wang Persaraan (Diperbadankan), Lembaga Tabung Angkatan Tentera, and Lembaga Tabung Haji. Their coordinated deployment reflects a deliberate strategy to strengthen Malaysia's economic resilience whilst ensuring that growth benefits reach ordinary Malaysians, a critical consideration given the external pressures emanating from global trade uncertainty and economic restructuring beyond Malaysia's borders.
Infrastructure and technology projects form a cornerstone of this year's deployment strategy. A Google data centre in Selangor backed by KWAP is projected to add 320 megawatts of capacity and generate 26,500 jobs through 2026 and 2027, whilst Empyrion Digital is executing a phased expansion in Johor. These anchor projects demonstrate how GEAR-uP capital extends beyond traditional financial returns to generate employment and technological capabilities that strengthen Malaysia's position in the regional and global digital economy.
Capital markets development represents another critical vector for GEAR-uP's impact. Specialised GLIC investment vehicles including Dana Impak, Dana Perintis, Dana Pemacu and Ekuinas are systematically advancing companies from venture to growth stages, whilst Khazanah's forthcoming Dana Ciptawan will inject RM200 million to strengthen Bumiputera enterprises and mid-tier Malaysian firms. This structured approach to venture and growth capital addresses a longstanding gap in Malaysia's ecosystem, where promising companies have historically struggled to secure scaling capital.
The broader capital markets infrastructure shows tangible momentum. Government-linked companies remain on track to generate RM100 billion in additional market value by 2028, with the MY Value Up initiative extending these value-creation disciplines to Malaysia's 88 largest listed companies. These efforts directly support the Capital Market Masterplan's ambitious target of achieving RM5.8 trillion to RM6.3 trillion in market capitalisation by 2030, a threshold that demands sustained pipeline development and investor confidence.
Energy transition and transportation infrastructure investments demonstrate GEAR-uP's role in addressing Malaysia's strategic development priorities. Tenaga Nasional Bhd continues expanding its electrical grid under Regulatory Period 4, with investment scaling from RM12 billion in 2025 towards RM15 billion in 2027 as Malaysia pursues its target of 70 per cent renewable energy in installed capacity by 2050. Simultaneously, Malaysia Airports is executing a five-year RM11 billion modernisation programme, with Kuala Lumpur International Airport's capacity expansion targeting over 100 million annual passengers, critical infrastructure for Malaysia's regional connectivity and tourism competitiveness.
Bumiputera wealth creation emerges as a distinctive emphasis within GEAR-uP's remit. The programme targets ten company listings across 2026-2027, complemented by the Bumiputera Champions Programme which seeks to scale participating enterprises. Zakat Wakalah contributions are projected to reach RM100 million by 2026, nearly quadrupling from RM28 million, illustrating how religious endowments can be mobilised for developmental impact whilst maintaining Islamic principles.
Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan articulated a philosophy distinguishing GEAR-uP from conventional capital deployment, emphasising that investment capital must not merely transit Malaysia but establish productive capacity that generates lasting value. The portfolio of supported companies delivered an eight per cent total shareholder return in 2025, demonstrating financial discipline, yet Amir Hamzah stressed that numerical returns matter primarily as they translate into living wages, graduate employment placements, scaled Bumiputera enterprises, and domestically-rooted supply chains.
This emphasis on qualitative outcomes reflects recognition that Malaysia's economic success depends on distributing growth benefits across society rather than concentrating them among financial actors. The GEAR-uP framework measures success through metrics encompassing wage adequacy, employment quality for university graduates, Bumiputera business scaling, and supply chain deepening within Malaysian territory. Such multidimensional assessment departs from conventional investment evaluation, recognising that sustainable prosperity requires broad-based participation.
The external environment, acknowledged as unstable through global volatility and economic reshaping, underscores why Malaysia requires coordinated capital deployment under the MADANI Economy framework. The government notes that earlier reforms executed in 2023 enabled Malaysia to navigate external turbulence, with GEAR-uP's direction established at launch in 2024 to provide steady guidance. The succeeding three years are characterised as carrying tangible opportunities already in motion, bringing prospects within reach of increasing numbers of Malaysians across employment, entrepreneurship and investment participation.
The GEAR-uP programme ultimately seeks to transform capital that Malaysia attracts into enduring capability spanning deep investment ecosystems, companies maturing into regional champions, and capital reaching households through superior wages, resilient local supply chains and higher-value employment. Success hinges not on financial metrics alone but on whether GLICs and government-linked companies demonstrate sustained deployment discipline, delivery consistency, and willingness to permit newly-established capabilities and enterprises time to establish roots and flourish within the Malaysian economy.
